Journal

When we established Bell Phillips we committed to not working long hours, nor compelling our team to do so. Tim and I had both come from offices which had toxic long hours cultures and we felt it wasn’t healthy nor necessary. Of course, there have been occasional deadlines that have required a push, but it wasn’t intrinsic to our office culture. Most days, if you walked into our studio at 6:15, it would be completely empty.

We took this approach because we wanted to have a happy, healthy team. We wanted people who have social lives, home lives and broader perspectives beyond the studio and architecture. I believe well-rounded, worldly people make better architects. We believe that tired people work less effectively - seriously, how good is your decision-making at 3am?.

So why is this culture so pervasive in architecture?

Maybe it’s a fig leaf for poor management. Work smarter, not harder.

It’s a way of keeping fees low. This is exploitative and wrong.

It’s part of a macho ‘look how hard I’m working’ culture (I’ve worked in offices where people would stay late even if they had no work just because that’s what the studio does).

So, if you’re a practice principal, reflect on this. Is the success of your practice based on exploitation?

If you’re a graduate or architect consider whether the success of the practice you work for is founded on the exploitation of your time and effort?